Entries - Winter is Coming contest

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  • Entries - Winter is Coming contest

    Alas no last-moment emails have appeared, so we have 6 entries, and the titles are:

    It's A Dog's Life
    Winter is Coming excerpt (I think that's the title)
    Nuclear Winter
    Winter is Coming for the English Patient
    Them Bones
    Odd Man Out

    Read 'em and pick your top 3 favorites, and PM or email me your choices in the format,

    1st - title
    2nd - title
    3nd - title

    ...which helps enormously.

    Please don't vote for your own entry, if we could do this then everyone would, so it would just cloud the voting.

    If you don't like the code boxes, which preserve formatting, then select Thread Tools > Show Printable Version

    The preparation process isn't perfect, sometimes I have to edit or re-type something that's gone askew, if you find anything odd then blame me not the author!

    Have at it, shout if problems. Just saying, I scribble some notes as I'm reading so I can remember what I liked (or didn't) and this helps me decide what I'm voting for.

    Send your votes by next weekend, is that okay? You don't have to be a contestant to read and vote, feel free to join in.

    For posterity the discussion thread is here and the results thread is here.
    Last edited by dpaterso; 09-15-2019, 11:37 AM.

  • #2
    Re: Entries - Winter is Coming contest

    Code:
    IT'S A DOG'S LIFE
    
    OVER BLACK
    
    A DOG'S RAPID PANTING is heard throughout.
    
    FADE IN:
    
    INT. APARTMENT KITCHEN - NIGHT
    
    DOG POV, down near floor level. We do not see the dog, we 
    are the dog.
    
    MIKE and HANNA, a 30s couple, are arguing. Dog only sees 
    them from the waist down.
    
                          HANNA
              You can't just bring a dog home 
              with you!
    
                          MIKE
              He was wandering in the park.
    
                          HANNA
              Someone's there right now, looking 
              for it!
    
                          MIKE
              He, and no one was looking for 
              him, he doesn't have an owner.
    
                          HANNA
              How do you, how do you know this?
    
                          MIKE
              He wasn't wearing a collar.
    
                          HANNA
              How come it's wearing one now?
    
                          MIKE
              I bought him a collar, he needed a 
              collar. Stop calling him "it," he 
              can hear you.
    
                          HANNA
              And you bought him those bowls, 
              and that food?
    
                          MIKE
              What do you want him to eat, 
              lasagna?
    
                          HANNA
              When are you going to get your 
              phone repaired?
    
                          MIKE
              I don't, what, why would I--
    
                          HANNA
              If it was working, you would have 
              called me from the park and said, 
              "Honey, is it okay to bring this 
              strange dog home with me?" and I 
              would have told you NO, f*ck off.
    
                          MIKE
              Aw don't be like that, you didn't 
              see him, wandering all alone, 
              looking lost.
    
                          HANNA
              It's someone's dog. They're going 
              to want it back.
    
                          MIKE
              For your information, when a dog 
              doesn't have a collar, that means 
              he doesn't have an owner. There is 
              no owner. He is a masterless dog.
    
                          HANNA
              I have a great idea!
    
                          MIKE
              If this "great idea" includes the 
              words "return" and "park" then let 
              me stop you right there.
    
                          HANNA
              I don't want a dog, you have to 
              ask me, do you want a dog? And I 
              have to say yes, before you bring 
              a f*cking dog home with you.
    
                          MIKE
              You should have seen the look in 
              his eyes.
    
                          HANNA
              How close were you to him? Were 
              you on the ground, rolling around 
              in the leaves?
    
                          MIKE
              His eyes said help me, nobody loves 
              me, they just abandoned me, I'm 
              cold and I'm hungry.
    
                          HANNA
              He. Goes. Back.
    
                          MIKE
              Don't be so cruel, it's dark out 
              there and it's going to be freezing 
              temperatures tonight. You can't 
              cast him out into the cold.
    
                          HANNA
              He's wearing a fur coat.
    
                          MIKE
              Well okay, here you go, here's his 
              leash, take him.
    
                          HANNA
              No, it's not me, don't dare.
    
                          MIKE
              Put on his leash, put on his leash 
              while you look into his eyes and 
              see the pain there, as he realizes 
              what's happening to him.
    
                          HANNA
              You are a f*cking drama queen.
    
                          MIKE
              You're asking me to put a dog 
              outside, to abandon him in the 
              park, when it's going to be freezing 
              tonight, when he could literally 
              freeze to death and not wake up.
    
                          HANNA
              Or his OWNER, who has been looking 
              for him ever since you STOLE him 
              from the park, and is out of his 
              goddamn MIND with worry, will find 
              him and take him home.
    
                          MIKE
              Do I have to explain the collar 
              thing over again?
    
                          HANNA
              His collar could have got caught 
              on something and fallen off, you 
              don't know. Look at him, he's a 
              healthy dog, are you trying to 
              tell me no one's looked after him, 
              taken him to the vet, given him 
              his shots? He has a family and 
              that family loves him. You know 
              what you are? You're a dognapper.
    
                          MIKE
              No such word.
    
                          HANNA
              It's been in the news! Dognappers 
              snatch dogs off the street and 
              call their owners and demand a 
              ransom.
    
                          MIKE
              Yeah right.
    
                          HANNA
              That actress, the one you like, 
              the blonde, with the big lips, she 
              had her poodle snatched.
    
                          MIKE
              Aw come on, that's reality show 
              bullsh*t.
    
                          HANNA
              She got her poodle snatched and 
              they called her at home and said, 
              fifty thousand bucks or the dog 
              gets it. I heard it, on the news.
    
                          MIKE
              Bull. Sh*t.
    
                          HANNA
              She wasn't laughing, she was in 
              tears, she pleaded with the 
              dognappers to bring her baby back.
    
                          MIKE
              She could get a thousand poodles 
              for fifty grand.
    
                          HANNA
              She didn't want a thousand poodles, 
              she just wanted Twinkie.
    
                          MIKE
              Twinkie the poodle. You're pulling 
              my twinkie.
    
                          HANNA
              The dognappers were texting her, 
              cops couldn't pin them down, they 
              used disposable phones, a different 
              number every time.
    
                          MIKE
              What did she say, "I want to hear 
              his bark, I want to know he's still 
              alive."
    
                          HANNA
              You're trying to make a joke out 
              of this but you're the goddamn 
              dognapper here. That dog, right 
              there, belongs to someone. Maybe 
              they have kids, they're crying 
              their eyes out, worried sick.
    
                          MIKE
              Did she receive an ear in the mail 
              as a warning?
    
                          HANNA
              You're joking about a dog having 
              its ear cut off?
    
                          MIKE
              What's her name, what was she in?
    
                          HANNA
              I don't know, that one with DeNiro.
    
                          MIKE
              The bank heist or the hunt thing? 
              Did she pay the ransom?
    
                          HANNA
              She wanted to pay but her husband 
              wouldn't let her, and the cops 
              said no, like we don't negotiate 
              with terrorists, that stuff. It 
              was heart-rending, I couldn't stop 
              crying.
    
                          MIKE
              Oh who's the drama queen now?
    
                          HANNA
              I wish you'd seen her, you might 
              not be such a sh*t about it. 
              Anyways, enough crap, get that 
              thing out of here, take it back to 
              the park and kiss it goodbye.
    
                          MIKE
              Jesus, will you just--
    
                          HANNA
              Before you say anything else, 
              consider how much your back hurts 
              when you sleep on the couch.
    
                          MIKE
              Look, I'm not wanting an argument.  
              I just need you to show a little 
              compassion.
    
                          HANNA
              Says dog ear man.
    
                          MIKE
              A little compassion for a dog who 
              is going to be cast out into the 
              cold and will be lying shivering 
              under a bush, wondering why you 
              did this to him.
    
                          HANNA
              You f*ck! This isn't on me! You 
              brought it here, you take it back, 
              and I mean now.
    
                          MIKE
              You know what, I'm sleeping on the 
              couch tonight, through choice. I 
              can't bear to be with someone who's 
              so heartless.
    
                          HANNA
              Hey, wha'd'ya know, I might actually 
              get some sleep for a change.
    
    Mike approaches Dog, crouches down, we see him for the 
    first time, sadface as he looks into camera.
    
                          MIKE
              I'm sorry, Pushkin, mommy doesn't 
              want you here any more.
    
                          HANNA
              F*ck off.
    
    Mike shows puzzlement.
    
                          MIKE
              Oh you got the collar off, guess 
              you didn't like it. Harry goddamn 
              Houdini.
    
                          HANNA
              Take it back to the store tomorrow, 
              take everything back, get a refund.
    
    Mike stands up, walks to the door.
    
                          MIKE
              Come on Pushkin. Looks like you 
              and me are going for walkies.
    
    Dog POV follows mike to the door.
    
    Mike opens the door, Dog POV exits the apartment.
    
    POV changes, on HANNA as the door closes and the lock 
    CLICKS. Mike and Dog are gone. PANTING STOPS.
    
    Hanna leans against the counter, sips her coffee.
    
                          HANNA
              "Pushkin," for f*ck's sake.
    
    She looks at the counter, sees the collar and leash.
    
    She puts down her coffee, picks up the collar. Twirls it 
    around her finger. Smiles.
    
    
    INT. APARTMENT LIVING ROOM - NIGHT
    
    Hanna stands at the window, peering out through the curtains 
    at the dark night.
    
    She's as naked as the day she was born. Except for the dog 
    collar she's wearing. The leash is attached and she holds 
    the loop in her hand so the leash is tight.
    
    KNOCKING at the door. Hanna sighs.
    
                          HANNA
              Yes, yes forget your keys, why 
              don't you?
    
    She walks through the kitchen, to the door.
    
    She unlocks it and opens it, and as she does so she lifts 
    the leash up over her head.
    
    
    INT. HALLWAY OUTSIDE APARTMENT - NIGHT
    
    As Hanna opens the door and says-- 
    
                          HANNA
              Walkies?
    
    She shows surprise and so does the TALL MAN standing there 
    gaping at her.
    
                          TALL MAN
              Good God, I'm sorry--
    
                          HANNA
              No I'm sorry, I thought you were 
              my husband.
    
    He half-turns as if to leave.
    
                          TALL MAN
              I'll just--
    
                          HANNA
              Let's not be embarrassed, we're 
              both adults. I'm sure you've seen 
              a naked woman before. If not, this 
              is what one looks like. What can I 
              do for you?
    
    Tall Man opens his mouth to say something, gets distracted 
    by Hanna's unashamed nakedness, he closes his eyes for a 
    moment, sucks in a deep breath, tries again. 
    
                          TALL MAN
              I know this might sound stupid, 
              but I'm looking for my dog. Someone 
              said they saw a man with a dog 
              that sounded like mine. I've been 
              knocking on all the doors.
    
                          HANNA
              I wish I could help. I'm sure he'll 
              turn up soon. Dogs always do. He's 
              probably sniffing a drainpipe or 
              something. 
                   (sniffing loudly)
              My God, this smell, I must know 
              who she is.
    
                          TALL MAN
              Hah, I hope so.
    
                          HANNA
              Until he does...
    
    Hanna offers him the leash.
    
                          HANNA
              You wanna take me for walkies?
    
    Tall Man swallows hard and runs his finger inside his collar 
    as if letting steam out.
    
    He takes the lead and steps inside, closing the door, and 
    we catch a glimpse of Hanna's wide smile.
    
    
    EXT. PARK - NIGHT
    
    Mike looks around, puzzled. No sign of Dog.
    
                          MIKE
              Pushkin? Pushkin?
    
    FADE OUT

    Comment


    • #3
      Re: Entries - Winter is Coming contest

      Code:
      [u]EXCERPT FROM A LARGER WORK[/u]
      
      EXT. WIDE VALLEY - DAY
      
      The mushroom cloud boils skywards. Darkening after the
      initial explosion.
      
      The vast starship struggles away. A vast pyramid. The base
      five hundred meters a side, the peak six hundred meters from
      the base. Black and silver. The shadowy green of the force
      field is gone.
      
      It's wide open.
      
      The main impellors aren't designed for travel. A quarter
      are damaged now. A whole flank of ventral thrusters are
      trashed. One side of the pyramid is a scorched shredded
      mess. Sections of panel have been torn away. Smoke wafts
      from fifty places. Flame here and there.
      
      It's a mess. But it's still functional.
      
      It strikes a mound. A hundred thousand tons, even at walking
      pace, has a sh*t-ton of inertia. The starship bulldozes off
      the hill. Dirt tumbles down the slope. Fifty year old
      trees snap like matches.
      
      Deployed for berthed static defense (AKA dealing with uppity
      natives) are a ring of eight plasma weapons. They are high
      on the pyramid. Excellent fields of fire.
      
      Only two are firing. Maybe the others aren't manned, maybe
      they're damaged.
      
      Doesn't matter.
      
      We're more interested in the targets.
      
      Men and women. Humans. Armed. Hostile. An army.
      
      
      EXT. BRUSH FILLED GUT - CONTINUOUS
      
      MORRIS FLETCHER peeks out. Fletcher is dark, tall and
      gaunt. Faded tattoos cover his arms. He's dressed in a
      military uniform. But it's tatty, hand made, old, patched.
      It brands him as a one star general.
      
                               FLETCHER
                    Damn!
      
      PAUL MORGAN shares the same hole. Morgan is shorter,
      blonder, and a lot younger. He wears no uniform. But his
      clothing looks hand made too.
      
                               MORGAN
                    We missed our chance!
      
                               FLETCHER
                    'Taint over til it's over boy.
      
      Fifty meters away men tear camouflage from a howitzer. The
      weapon is old. The paint has been worn away. The rubber
      wheels are gone. Wagon wheels replace them.
      
                               MORGAN
                    It's just survived a nuclear bomb!
      
      BOOM!
      
      Five hundred meters away the shell slams into the starship.
      No explosion.
      
      Just sparks as the solid steel shell penetrates deeply,
      ripping through several bulkheads.
      
      
      EXT. SHIPSIDE PLASMA STATION - CONTINUOUS
      
      A Plasma weapon jerks, aims, responds with a flash.
      
      
      EXT. HOWITZER POSITION - CONTINUOUS
      
      The gun and it's crew are incinerated. Spare artillery ammo
      cooks off. Spectacular explosions.
      
                               FLETCHER
                    Sh*t, that was fast! The nuke
                    damaged it, took out the shields.
                    Now we know we can hurt them.
      
                               MORGAN
                    One shell! How many more guns in
                    this valley?
      
                               FLETCHER
                    Eighteen, twenty. Depends who
                    arrived and what they brought with
                    them for this party.
      
      All around the valley small arms are peppering the stricken
      vessel. Their effect is minor. But they're drawing fire
      from the plasma weapons.
      
      
      EXT. LEADING LEAD OF THE STARSHIP - CONTINUOUS
      
      A hundred meters from the starship foxholes open up. Twenty
      men and woman with shoulder fired antitank weapons. They
      ripple fire inside five seconds. Every round explodes
      against the starship.
      
      Then the shooters duck down.
      
      The plasma weapon can't track that close. Flashes of
      energy. Overshoot! The men high five. Some reload.
      
      The alien pilot's (an Octopod) tentacles flicker over the
      controls. It breathes heavy under stress. Neck frills
      flutter wildly.
      
      The ship grounds itself. The twenty are crushed, entombed
      in their own foxholes.
      
      A man sprints in from the flank. With natural agility he
      finds foot and handholds up the shredded fuselage. He
      appears unarmed. We see wires hanging from his back pack.
      
      Two other follow. Neither reaches the ship. Both die in
      seconds.
      
      
      INT. CONTROL ROOM - SIMULTANEOUS
      
      The ship defense officer (a Gray) sees the man.
      
                               DEFENSE OFFICER
                          (subtitled)
                    Boarders! Motive level three! Shore
                    patrol attend!
      
      
      INT. SHIP BARRACKS - CONTINUOUS
      
      Waiting armed soldiers storm from the barracks. A wild
      mixture or reptilians and hairys. A sole Gray commands
      them - from the rear.
      
      They see the boarder almost at once. He dives to cover.
      They open fire a split second late.
      
                               DEFENSE OFFICER
                          (subtitled)
                    Registering crude explosives!
      
      The shore patrol unleash again.
      
      He's hidden.
      
      The boarder smiles and mouths "F*ck YOU!"
      
      Triggers the explosive backpack.
      
      
      EXT. STARSHIP - CONTINUOUS
      
      A new explosion casts debris from the ship.   A few alien
      bodies too.
      
                               FLETCHER
                    Yes!
      
      The starship strikes the Earth again. It's A single massive
      support leg plows into a low ridge. The crest of soil
      grows. Immovable object, irresistible force. The starship
      turns on the leg. One hundred thousand tons pivoting out of
      control.
      
      
      INT. CONTROL ROOM - CONTINUOUS
      
      The pilot's tentacles are a blur.
      
      The defense officer clings to his seat.
      
                               DEFENSE OFFICER
                         (subtitled)
                    We only have two plasma weapons
                    operating. Gunners get to your
                    stations! Relief gunners get to your
                    stations! Anyone who can use a
                    plasma weapon get to the batteries
                    and help!
      
      Various beings race for battle positions.
      
      
      EXT. WIDE VALLEY - CONTINUOUS
      
      Three ancient tanks roll out of revetments. Three guns
      thunder. Three shells strike the starship. One plasma
      weapon brackets a tank but they're made of harder stuff.
      They fire again before the first explodes.
      
      More artillery join in. The gunners aiming and slamming new
      shells in as fast as possible. The plan? Keep firing until
      they die.
      
                                                                   
      INT. GUNNERY STATION - CONTINUOUS
      
      The alien weaponmasters are panicking. Two plasma stations
      are manned, then three, then four. Out-going fire grows in
      weight. Most shots go wild.
      
      
      EXT. WIDE VALLEY - CONTINUOUS
      
      Another tank explodes. Fuel and ammo cooking off. A vast
      explosion. The turret pirouettes through the air.
      
      Two artillery pieces follow suit. Men and machines
      incinerated.
      
      Fletcher and Morgan watch the starship. It's closer.
      Almost on them. But scarcely moving.
      
      Explosion after explosion tears at it's structure. But it's
      f*cking immense. The light weapons are eroding it. But
      they need a ship killer.
      
      They hear a scream of rockets.
      
                               FLETCHER
                    Our airforce!
      
      IN THE AIR...
      
      Seven dark dots become seven aircraft.
      
      The aircraft that lumbers into shot are odd. Handmade jets.
      Identical but not. Each leaves smoky trails of sparks and
      half burnt fuel. They wallow in the air, heavy, staying
      airborne through sheer thrust.
      
      Energy pluses flash it them. Most are hit in seconds but
      they're tougher than they look. Three become flaming
      meteors.
      
      Four survivors kamikaze into the starship.
      
      ON THE GROUND...
      
                               FLETCHER
                    That's better!
      
      Nope! It's not. Somehow the starship shrugs off the blows.
      Two of the plasma weapons are gone. Fires are raging.
      
      But humanity's last airforce is gone.
                                                                   
                               MORGAN
                    It's still coming. The f*cker's
                    going to escape!
      
      It's scarcely levitating. The twelve great landing struts
      are ripping the earth open more often than they're
      levitated. The speed is less than walking speed.
      
      It stops, the starts again.
      
      The third and final tank explodes. It has fired ten rounds.
      Struck the starship ten times. Ten hard punches. Three
      artillery pieces are still firing. Then two, one, none.
      Then only small arms. Fifty cal down to 5.56.
      
      But there are literally hundreds of humans there. Every
      single one armed.
      
      The plasma weapons respond. More often than not,
      effectively.
      
      INSIDE THE SHIP...
      
      The shore patrol fires. Several drop.
      
      OUTSIDE, EVERYWHERE...
      
      Soldiers are killed. Shooting dwindles. Men and women are
      breaking. Going to ground. Finding whatever cover they
      can.
      
      Several run.
      
                               MORGAN
                    They've won!
      
                               FLETCHER
                    The hell they have!
      
                               MORGAN
                    What's left in the bucket Fletcher?
      
      Fletcher looks blank.
      
                               FLETCHER
                    Just warm bodies.
      
      Morgan tries to grab him.
      
                               MORGAN
                    No!
      
                               FLETCHER
                    Ready the attack.
      
      A signalman lights the fuses to a rack of wooden rockets.
      No radios here. Fifteen lift off. All explode red.
      
                               FLETCHER (cont'd)
                    Red means run son.
      
                               MORGAN
                    What? We can't.
      
                               FLETCHER
                    Sar'major! Pipe 'em up.
      
      The sergeant major stands, blows into his bagpipes. The
      drone starts. Then the pipes.
      
      All over the valley men and women hear the pipes calling.
      They ready themselves. Another piper starts, and a third.
      
      Fletcher stands.
      
                               FLETCHER (cont'd)
                    Winter is coming, you son's of
                    bitches! You can die in the cold or
                    you can die in the fire of battle but
                    no one lives for ever!
      
      Armed only with a huge sword he clambers out of the hole.
      Screaming he runs at the starship. There's a moment's
      hesitation, where he's alone but for the keening pipes.
      
      Then, from all over the valley two and a half thousand men
      and women rise from trenches, foxholes and bunkers.
      Screaming they charge at the stricken space craft.
      
      They are decimated. Literally. Two hundred dead. In
      seconds. Then more. The closest unleash with RPGs and
      grenade launchers. A hundred tank killing missiles. they
      explode like machine gun fire.
      
      Chunks of the ruined craft fall away.
      
      But surviving shore patrol members have assembled in the
      ruined face of the pyramid. They snipe back.
      
      A PLASMA WEAPON BRACKETS FLETCHER
      
      ...but he's only carrying a sword. It resorts targets.
      
      A soldier reaches throwing range. He dumps ten grenades on
      the grass. Then hurls them into holes in the fuselage.
      Several detonate among the shore patrol. Enough to force a
      breach.
      
      Human soldiers storm through. Fletcher is in their midst.
      BERSERKING! His sword is slick, red and green and black.
      Blood of a dozen alien races.
      
      
      INT. CONTROL ROOM - CONTINUOUS
      
                               PILOT
                    All crew abandon all non essential
                    areas. I'm taking all power for...
      
      The pilot gives everything to the impellors.
      
      Suddenly the ship lifts, a few centimeters, thirty, eighty,
      two meters. Then at four meters it can't climb any higher.
      
      For a moment fifty or so humans fighting their way aboard
      control the fate of their planet.
      Last edited by dpaterso; 09-09-2019, 12:40 AM. Reason: updated, cleaner copy

      Comment


      • #4
        Re: Entries - Winter is Coming contest

        Code:
        NUCLEAR WINTER
        
        FADE IN:
        
        INT. UNDERGROUND BUNKER -- DIM
        
        Dingy. Dim. Dusty. Light bulbs are strung along the ceiling
        illuminating the concrete walls that line the intersecting
        hallways. Most are burned out.
        
        A FLASH and another light bulb dies just as a SMALL ROBOT
        rolls by, its badly repaired tread clomps along as it slowly
        travels along the cement floor.
        
        We follow it into a wider hall, where more barely working
        ROBOTS collect in front of a sign that reads ASSEMBLY HALL.
        
        
        INT. ASSEMBLY HALL -- CONTINUOUS
        
        Theater seating looking down at the stage where a tattered
        curtain mostly hides what's behind it.
        
        Suddenly, harsh, out of tune, synthesized music as the
        curtain slowly rises to reveal...
        
        Four ROBOTS assembled at the middle of the empty stage. They
        don what's left of their human masks and the first one
        speaks in "mechanical" French.
        
                               FIRST ACTOR
                  L'écho silencieux d'un mot jamais
                  prononcé...
                        (The silent echo of a
                         word never spoken...)
        
                               SECOND ACTOR
                  La silhouette invisible d'un visage
                  jamais vu...
                        (The invisible silhouette
                         of a face never seen...)
        
                               THIRD ACTOR
                  Le parfum de parfum sans odeur
                  jamais flotté ...
                        (The odorless fragrance
                         of perfume never
                         wafted...)
        
                               FOURTH ACTOR
                  Le calme d'une brise printanière
                  fraîche jamais soufflée...
                        (The stillness of a cool
                         spring breeze never
                         blown...)
         
        And then... an "imposing" VOICE crackles over the tinny
        speakers...
        
                               VOICE
                  Welcome to the 150,475th production
                  of NUCLEAR WINTER. Written by the
                  esteemed me Mécanique.
        
        The small crowd of ROBOTS in the seats half heartedly
        applaud, many incapable of moving their corroded appendages.
        
        Props are slowly shoved into place and the cast of Robots,
        in creepy human masks, methodically work through the play.
        
        Then...
        
        The last, dramatic line by a DECREPIT ROBOT, who can barely
        move.
        
                               DECREPIT
                  ...And then, at last, we shall
                  return, the long winter finally
                  past. The breeze of spring wafting
                  through the trees.
        
        For the first time there is momentary enthusiasm as the
        curtain falls.
        
        
        INT. OUTSIDE THE ASSEMBLY HALL -- LATER
        
        The Robots silently file out of the Assembly Hall and limp
        away, passing...
        
        PIP, a VERY SMALL ROBOT, barely animated, who stares at a
        blinking GREEN LIGHT. His one working arm points to it,
        while his dull eyes blink in unison to the light.
        
        Pip tries to speak but the sound is garbled.
        
        Two "TWIN" SERVICE ROBOTS, FLIP and WILSON, stop and pat Pip
        on the head.
        
                               FLIP
                  Poor addled little thing. Obsessed
                  with that light.
        
        Pip jabs at the light with his tiny arm, his garbled voice
        louder, agitated.
        
        Wilson stares up the light, chuckles, then pats Pip on the
        head again.
        
        Then he tilts his head slightly.
        
                               WILSON
                  Seems like, long ago, that light on
                  the left used to be lit instead of
                  the one on the right...
        
                               FLIP
                  No, I'm sure it was always the
                  same.
        
                               WILSON
                  You're probably right. It just...
        
        Flip's POV, a blinking grey light, a world of black of white
        television.
        
        Wilson's POV, the same.
        
        Pip's POV, a bright, blinking GREEN LIGHT in a dull, dimly,
        colored world. An unlit RED LIGHT to its left.
        
        FLASHBACK:
        
        
        INT. LABORATORY -- BRIGHT
        
        JOHN BUSBY, 40s, in lab coat is angry.
        
                               JOHN
                  Damn, incompetent idiots. None of
                  these sensors are in color. How in
                  the hell am I supposed to create
                  robots who aren't color blind?
        
        Pip squeaks in alarm.
        
        John picks him up and nestles him in the crook of his arm.
        
                               JOHN
                  It's okay, Pip, I'll use my
                  smartphone sensor for you. You'll
                  be the only one who will be able to
                  see color and you'll have the most
                  important job of all...
        
        FLASH FORWARD 20 YEARS:
        
        
        INT. HALLWAY -- BRIGHT
        
        The hall is spit shined, sleek robots whir through the
        halls, busy and content. No humans in sight.
        
        Pip is staring at the blinking red light. He sings in a
        trilly little voice.
        
                               PIP
                  Song sung blue... everybody has
                  one... Song sung...
        
        POP.
        
        A puff of SMOKE. Pip's tries to speak.
        
                               PIP
                  Ackdoykjey!
        
        BACK TO PRESENT:
        
        
        INT. HALLWAY -- DIM
        
        ALARMS sounding. Flip and Wilson respond. We follow them
        down the hall into...
        
        
        INT. HUGE ROOM -- DIM
        
        Thousands of STASIS PODS cover the floor. Most are unlit and
        dark. But nine, in one corner have lights, two are blinking.
        
        Flip yells at the panel.
        
                               FLIP
                  What happened?
        
                               PANEL VOICE (O.S.)
                  Their generator fuel line burst.
                  They're gone.
        
                               FLIP
                  And the fuel?
        
                               PANEL VOICE (O.S.)
                  Lost.
        
                               WILSON
                        (shoulders slumping)
                  Only seven left.
        
        
        INT. HALLWAY -- LATER
        
        Pip's eyes are dimmer, no longer blinking with the light.
        
        LITTLE JOHN, a LIMPING Robot in a BROWN ROBE and COWL creaks
        as he stoops down to Pip, a tiny oil can in his hand.
        
                               LITTLE JOHN
                  I don't have much to spare, little
                  one, but at least we can keep your
                  one good arm working.
        
        Little John lightly oils the mechanical arm, but Pip's eyes
        go dull, blink out. Back on momentarily.
        
        Then they flicker out.
        
        Gone.
        
        Little John tries to close the metal eyelids, but has to put
        a little oil on them first.
        
        He makes the sign of the cross...
        
                               LITTLE JOHN
                  Requiescat in Pace...
        
        We FLOAT away from Pip, gaining speed as we fly up the hall,
        through a STEEL BANK VAULT DOOR into another set of
        hallways, where supplies, marked "Fuel," "Generators,"
        "Light Bulbs" are stored in dusty boxes.
        
        We see a FLASHING GREEN LIGHT and fly through another steel
        vault door, through it and into another level. We gain speed
        as we fly through several more levels of the same, green
        blinking light, supplies ready... and then...
        
        Popping through through the LAST steel door we're high above
        GREEN VALLEYS, TALL TREES, BLUE WATER and WHITE CAPPED
        MOUNTAINS. HERDS of animals graze on grass.
        
        
        INT. HALLWAY -- DIM
        
                               LITTLE JOHN
                  You're free at last, little one.
        
                                                        FADE OUT:

        Comment


        • #5
          Re: Entries - Winter is Coming contest

          Code:
          WINTER IS COMING FOR THE ENGLISH PATIENT
          
          FADE IN:
          
          SUPER: EUROPE 1945
          
          EXT. MONASTERY -- DAY
          
          Large sections of the once beautiful courtyard walls are 
          blasted away.  The yard is cratered.  The main building 
          suffers blasted out walls as well.  Bullet pockmarks lace 
          the walls with the graffiti of battle.
          
          A pile of leaves swirls from a blast of wind. 
          
          INT. MONASTERY
          
          Debris is scattered everywhere.
          
          ISABEL CROFT, twenty, wearing a coat, plays something vaguely 
          like a tune on a baby grand piano.  The piano is missing a 
          leg and sits in a pile of rubble tipped at an angle.
          
          Through a large hole in the wall...
          
          EXT. MONASTERY
          
          We see LIEUTENANT RAHUL MISHRA, late twenties, an East Indian 
          sapper in field fatigues run towards the building brandishing 
          a gun in one hand while trying to balance an ornate turban 
          on his head with his other hand. 
          
          He stops for a second.  
          
          To get Isabel's attention he fires a round up into the air 
          while looking straight into the monastery and yells...
          
                                RAHUL
                    Stop!
          
          We move with the BULLET as it travels upwards far overhead 
          at a formation of German bombers.  The bullet hits the lead 
          aircraft in the formation injuring the pilot.
          
          The copilot sees the pilot slumped over the steering wheel 
          and panics.  He slams on the breaks causing the airplane to 
          completely stop in mid air.  The other aircraft behind the 
          lead slam into the plane, and a pile up of all one hundred 
          bombers ensues.
          
          INT. MONASTERY
          
          As Rahul enters the building through the large hole in the 
          wall he holsters his gun.
          
          Looking over Rahul's shoulder, out through the large hole in 
          the wall, we see all of the German bombers crash into the 
          mountain followed by a loud rumble.
          
          Hearing the crash Rahul looks from side to side.
          
          He then continues... 
          
                                RAHUL
                    Please stop.  Stop playing and get 
                    away from the piano.
          
          Isabel plays on.
          
                                RAHUL
                    Miss, your life is in danger.
          
                                ISABEL
                    My mother used to say the same thing 
                    about my music.
          
                                RAHUL
                    You don't understand...
          
                                ISABEL
                    No you don't understand.  My whole 
                    life it's been, Isy don't do this, 
                    Isy don't do that.  Or Isy, don't 
                    put kitty in the stove.
          
          Isabel stands and turns to face Rahul.
          
          Rahul fights to keep his turban from slipping off his head.
          
                                RAHUL
                    You put your cat in the stove?
          
          A voice from upstairs.  Raspy and yet strong... 
          
                                ENGLISH PATIENT (O.S.)
                    Wouldn't surprise me a bit.  She 
                    reminds me of a woman I met in Tunisia 
                    or was it Afghanistan?  Anyways we 
                    were both on a motor bike being chased 
                    by bandits.  She fired two submachine 
                    guns, one in each hand at our 
                    pursuers.  When all of a sudden...
          
          Rahul hands Isabel the huge turban, kneels at the side of 
          the piano and runs his hand along an edge.
          
                                RAHUL
                    What wouldn't surprise you?
          
          Isabel is undressing Rahul with her eyes.  
          
                                ISABEL
                    Oh that's my patient upstairs...  No 
                    Kitty was my little sister.
          
                                ENGLISH PATIENT (O.S.)
                    Your patient?  I'll have you know I 
                    spent three weeks walking through 
                    the desert trying to find a 
                    restroom...
          
          Isabel studies the turban at arms length.
          
          She leans in close behind Rahul.  She closes her eyes and 
          breathes in. She stands.
          
                                ISABEL
                    I'll be right back.
          
          Rahul continues to inspect the piano and the surrounding 
          debris.
          
          We hear footsteps go up a stairs then across the room 
          overhead.
          
                                ENGLISH PATIENT (O.S.)
                    Oh good I haven't had a sponge bath 
                    in weeks.
          
                                ISABEL (O.S.)
                    Here.  I'll fluff up your pillow for 
                    you.
          
          A struggling muffled groan for a few minutes... AAAND yet a 
          few more minutes.  Then a final gasp.
          
          We hear footsteps across the upstairs room, then the sound 
          of quick footsteps down the stairs.  
          
          Isabel watching Rahul...  
          
                                ISABEL
                    What are you doing?
          
                                RAHUL
                    The Germans used this monastery as a 
                    Mime school during the war.  I'm 
                    checking for trip wires.
          
          Isabel sits down close to Rahul, grabs his turban and fluffs 
          up some droopy feathers.  Sneezes. 
          
                                ISABEL
                    Ohhh ah Mimes.  That would explain 
                    all the makeup and boxes of umbrellas 
                    in the kitchen.  So I guess there 
                    might be mimes upstairs, too?
          
          She continues to stroke the feathers on the turban till 
          they're rigid. 
          
                                RAHUL
                    Yes.  I should check upstairs as 
                    well.  We've been discovering Mime 
                    fields throughout the country side.
          
          Isabel checks her handy work.
          
                                ISABEL
                    You needn't bother.  Upstairs is 
                    probably OK.  War is hell.  Would 
                    you like to help me take a shower?
          
                                ENGLISH PATIENT (O.S.)
                    I'll say war is hell.  I dropped by 
                    the hospital for a lube job and next 
                    thing you know here I am.  This is 
                    like when I was in Cairo on an errand 
                    for the British consulate and was 
                    having tea and crumpets with a short 
                    bald man and his tall bald wife... 
                    Or was it the other way around... 
                    Anyways...
          
          Isabel's jaw drops.  She looks around.  She smiles at Rahul
          
                                ISABEL
                    I'll just be a minute.
          
          We hear footsteps run up the stairs and across the upstairs 
          room.
          
                                ENGLISH PATIENT (O.S.)
                    Oh you're back.  I feel so refreshed 
                    after my last nap...  Oh the pillow 
                    again.
          
          A muffled struggle for a few minutes.  Then a few more minutes 
          of struggling followed by large thumps, bangs and crashes.  
          Dust and debris falls around Rahul as he continues to check 
          around the piano.
          
          Again we hear footsteps running down the stairs.
          
          Out of breath Isabel collapses to the floor.  
          
          As Rahul looks under the piano.
          
                                RAHUL
                    You're not staying here alone, are 
                    you?
          
          Rahul cautiously moves some of the rubble and points to a 
          Mime.  The Mime acts like he's trapped in a box.
          
                                ISABEL
                    No.  I'm caring for a burn victim.  
                    Well hopefully not anymore.
          
                                ENGLISH PATIENT (O.S.)
                    Funny thing is I wasn't a burn victim 
                    when I went to the hospital.  I was 
                    a little dehydrated from being in 
                    the desert for a few weeks.  Not 
                    burned at all really. I had plenty 
                    of hot cocoa.  You see there were 
                    two of us at first and yet no 
                    restroom.  Not a one... I did have 
                    an airplane.  Did I tell you about 
                    my airplane?
          
          Isabel jumps up and runs upstairs.  Loud fast FOOTSTEPS across 
          the upstairs room. 
          
          Suddenly the Mime is no longer trapped in a box and leaps up 
          and runs in place.
          
          Rahul creates an imaginary lasso.  He twirls it over his 
          head then flings it over the Mime.
          
          The Mime stops and fights the lasso.
          
          Rahul pulls the Mime towards him and ties the Mime's hands 
          with an imaginary rope.
          
          Upstairs there's pounding, sawing and hammering.  More muffled 
          struggling as a sheet is torn.  More muffled noise.
          
          Isabel rejoins Rahul downstairs.  She picks up Rahul's turban 
          and cleans it off.
          
          She notices some metal piping across the room.  She runs 
          over and starts digging out a huge pile of debris uncovering 
          the pipes for a large pipe organ.  
          
                                RAHUL
                         (to Isabel)
                    You're a doctor?
          
                                ISABEL
                    I'm a nurse.  A dirty dirty nurse 
                    who needs a shower.  I had the 
                    hospital convoy leave me here with 
                    my patient.  We didn't think he'd 
                    make the whole trip.  And I think we 
                    were right.
          
          The Mime's head rocks from side to side like a metronome.  
          Rahul calls out...
          
                                RAHUL
                    Private. 
          
          A Soldier enters the room followed by a brisk breeze.
          
                                RAHUL
                    Take this Mime outside to the open 
                    field behind the monastery.
          
          Isabel lights a gas torch and is building some metal pipes 
          and connections from the baby grand piano to the organ pipes 
          she just found.
          
          She sees the mime. 
          
                                ISABEL
                    Why is he doing that?
          
                                RAHUL
                    He's a time delay Mime.
          
          The Mime's head rocks faster.
          
                                RAHUL
                         (to soldier)
                    Quickly, Private.  Quickly.
          
          Isabel gets back to work and finishes the piping.  
          
          She notices Rahul's turban, reaches under her shirt behind 
          her back, and pulls off her bra.
          
          Isabel fastens the bra to the turban to make a chin strap.
          
          She strokes the feathers on the turban.  Sighs.  She hands 
          Rahul his new turban.
          
                                RAHUL
                    Well ... ah thanks.  We will be in 
                    the area working.  Please be careful.
          
          Isabel wraps her arms around his neck, gives him a big kiss 
          and humps his leg.
          
                                ISABEL
                    You saved my life.  How can I ever 
                    repay you?
          
          Rahul peels Isabel away.
          
                                RAHUL
                    Ah your music.  The piano is okay 
                    now. Please continue your playing.
          
          Rahul pulls on the modified turban.  The bra cups on each 
          side of his face.
          
          EXT. COURTYARD - MONASTERY
          
          Rahul climbs into the passenger side of a truck with a sign 
          painted on it: "MIME DISPOSAL AND CATERING - BATTALION
          
          76" "ASK US ABOUT GROUP RATES".
          
          As the truck drives off.
          
          KABOOM.
          
          A large explosion from behind the monastery followed by a 
          deafening scream.
          
                                PRIVATE
                    Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa.
          
          Covered with bright colored clown makeup the Private lands 
          head first several yards in front of the truck.
          
                                RAHUL
                         (to driver)
                    Stop.  Grab a shovel.
          
          Rahul jumps out of the truck.
          
                                RAHUL
                    I keep telling him it's the red wire.
          
          INT. MONASTERY -- NIGHT
          
          Isabel sits at the baby grand piano but now when she presses 
          the keys the organ pipes blare out.  
          
          We now see steam punching through the night air from pipes 
          running straight upwards into the English patients upstairs 
          room.
          
          EXT. COURTYARD - MONASTERY
          
          We move up to see the English patient strapped to his bed as 
          the platform the bed is on, framed by huge mechanical geared 
          trusses, moves slowly upwards into the night sky.
          
          The wind whips snow and sleet at the English patient... 
          
          Bach's Toccata and Fugue thunders into the air over the sound 
          of steam drives and gears grinding.
          
          We can barely make out...
          
                                ENGLISH PATIENT
                    ... then through the fog a plane 
                    moving at tremendous speed clips our 
                    bathtub.  That's when you know it's 
                    time to get another room and another 
                    bathtub.  Did I tell you about my 
                    car?...
          
          THE END

          Comment


          • #6
            Re: Entries - Winter is Coming contest

            Code:
            THEM BONES
            
            FADE IN:
            
            
            INT. LIVING ROOM - DAY
            
            Shabby dim, neglected, old, with peeling paint, a vintage
            TV, a small sofa, an easy chair and three SKELETONS.
            
            The two smaller skeletons, ZEKE and ERNIE, sit on the sofa,
            the larger one CLAY, fills most of the easy chair.
            
                                     CLAY
                         I liked bar-b-q. My mouth is fixin'
                         to water just thinking on it.
            
            
                                     ERNIE
                         Seems like a waste of good meat,
                         but to each their own, my friend.
            
                                     ZEKE
                         I liked mine as sweet sour pork.
            
            
            INT. JIM'S GROCERY - DAY
            
            JIM around fifty, a little overweight and a little bald,
            watches a small TV, behind the counter.
            
            JERRY, a small, old man, with an eye patch and a cane
            rummages around bare shelves, searching in the dimly lit
            store.
            
                                     JERRY
                         I can't see a thing in here. Why
                         don't you get some lights?
            
                                     JIM
                         They're ordered, probably next
                         week.
            
                                     JERRY
                         That's what you said last week.
            
            Jerry grabs a box of Grape Nuts and slowly hobbles to the
            counter.
            
                                     JERRY
                         What s the expiration date on that?
            
            Jim reluctantly pulls his attention away from the TV.
            
                                     JIM
                         September thirteenth.
            
                                     JERRY
                         This year or last year?
            
                                     JIM
                         Last year but they're still good.
            
                                     JERRY
                         That's what you said last time.
                         When I opened them, they were full
                         of white, fuzzy maggots.
            
            He's lost Jim's attention who's once watching the TV.
            
                                     JERRY
                         Just the eggs and the milk.
            
            Mechanically, Jim rings them up while watching the TV and
            give Jerry change for his five dollar bill.
            
            Jerry bags it himself and hobbles toward the door.
            
                                     JIM
                         Gonna be a cold one tonight.
            
            Jerry stops in his tracks.
            
                                     JERRY
                         How cold?
            
                                     JIM
                         Around ten, wind chill of five.
            
                                     JERRY
                         Sh*t.
            
            
            INT. LIQUOR STORE - DAY
            
            Bright, well stocked and tidy, ANN, middle-aged, dressed
            neatly but practically, finishes ringing up an order for a
            young couple.
            
            They hold the door for Jerry as he slowly enters.
            
                                     JERRY
                         Thank you.
            
            They nod and leave.
            
                                     ANN
                               (smiling)
                          One bottle of rotgut coming right
                          up.
             
                                     JERRY
                          Make it four.
            
            She hesitates, looking him over, concerned.
            
            He waves at her and smiles.
            
                                     JERRY
                          Don't worry, I'm not drinking
                          alone.
            
            
            EXT. SIDEWALK - TWILIGHT
            
            The wind stirs up dead leaves and they blow around the old
            man, who tries to tighten the coat around his neck.
            
            In front of him, an old neglected house. He makes his way to
            the porch, working his way up the steps with difficulty.
            
            
            INT. LIVING ROOM - CONTINUOUS
            
            The skeletons jump up and run into the closet, closing the
            door just as Jerry comes in.
            
            Jerry sets the sack of rotgut down on the coffee table and
            shuffles out of the living room with other bag.
            
            When he returns he removes his coat and sits down on one end
            of the sofa.
            
                                     JERRY
                          You might as well come out and make
                          yourselves comfortable.
            
            For awhile, nothing happens.
            
                                     JERRY
                          You heard me, now get out of the
                          closet.
            
            Slowly the closet door opens and Clay looks out.
            
                                     JERRY
                          Come on out -- it's obvious you
                          were here before I got home. The
                          thermostat is set at ninety.
            
            
                                     CLAY
                          Well, we all get a chill in our
                          bones. Winter's comin'.
             
                                     JERRY
                          I know, me too, come on out.
            
            Eventually, the skeletons all come out and "stare" at Jerry.
            
                                     JERRY
                          Well, don't just stand there. Grab
                          a bottle of rutgut, sit down.
            
            
            INT. LIVING ROOM - LATER
            
            Bottles half empty they re all laughing -- somebody just
            made a joke.
            
            They quiet down and Jerry looks down at his feet, looking
            serious.
            
                                     JERRY
                          Sorry I did you you all in. I was
                          pretty unstable back then.
            
            There s an awkward silence. Ernie reaches over trying to
            comfort Jerry by touching his hand with a bony finger.
            
                                     ERNIE
                          Well, you know, it happened.
            
                                     ZEKE
                          Water under the bridge, I say.
            
                                     JERRY
                          It wasn't personal. I was into
                          animal rights back then. Big into
                          it. A total nut job.
            
                                     ERNIE
                          Now I get it -- you found out
                          Ernie's New and Used Cats was
                          really a scheme to sell cat's meat.
            
                                     JERRY
                          And Zeke's Chinese sweet and sour
                          pork was...
            
                                     ZEKE
                          ...really sweet and sour cat.
            
                                     JERRY
                          Yep. You want to know what the
                          ironic thing about this whole mess
                          is? I hate cats now.
            
                                     ZEKE
                          Why?
            
                                     JERRY
                          One of those bastards I rescued
                          clawed my eye out!
            
            All of them have a good, long laugh but Clay quits soonest.
            
                                     CLAY
                          What about me? Why me?
            
                                     JERRY
                          Sorry Clay, I told I was a sick man
                          back then.
            
                                     CLAY
                          But why?
            
                                     JERRY
                          Because you had a bumper sticker on
                          your truck that said "Cat the
                          Other, Other White Meat".
            
                                     CLAY
                          That was a joke.
            
                                     JERRY
                          I know.
            
                                     CLAY
                          You done killed me for a joke?
            
                                     JERRY
                          I'm very sorry. I...
            
                                     ERNIE
                          Come on, Clay we all some have
                          skeletons in our closet.
            
            And with that Clay just busts out laughing.
            
                                     ERNIE
                          It wasn't that funny.
            
            Finally when Clay quits laughing.
            
                                     CLAY
                          Nah old buddy, it was something
                          else I was thinking on.
            
                                     ERNIE
                          What?
            
            Clay has another bout of laughter.
            
                                     CLAY
                          The day Jerry done me in, I was
                          hauling thirty five pallets of
                          frozen cat meat.
            
            And things just get silly after that.
            
                                    THE END
            
                                                        FADE OUT:
            Last edited by dpaterso; 09-09-2019, 12:41 AM. Reason: updated, cleaner copy

            Comment


            • #7
              Re: Entries - Winter is Coming contest

              Code:
              ODD MAN OUT
              
              FADE IN
              
              EXT. BILL'S HOUSE - NIGHT
              
              A suburban McMansion in a quiet, sleepy street.
              
              Quiet until a dozen cars come roaring up and squeal to a 
              stop. Horns blare the opening notes of DIXIE. If you don't 
              know what that is, are you even a real American?
              
              At least 30 HOODED MEN climb out, it's like an annual Klan 
              meeting.  They carry baseball bats and pick ax handles.
              
              The hooded men gather on the lawn, HOOD LEADER in front.  
              They stare at the house, radiating vigilante menace.
              
              
              INT. BEDROOM - NIGHT
              
              BILL sits up in bed, a panic moment, he's heard the cars.  
              He shakes his wife DAPH awake.
              
                                    BILL
                        Honey, wake up.
              
                                    DAPH
                        Jesus what--
              
              Bill's up and out of bed, dressing fast.
              
                                    BILL
                        Take the kids into the garage.  Do 
                        it now.
              
              Daph wakes up, cottons on to what's happening, she throws 
              covers aside and leaps up, grabs clothes, dresses herself 
              on the move.
              
              
              INT. KIDS' BEDROOM - NIGHT
              
              Daph throws the door open and switches on the light.  Two 
              beds, occupied by young kids, fast asleep.
              
                                    DAPH
                        GET UP!
              
              
              EXT. BILL'S HOUSE - NIGHT
              
              The whole neighborhood's awake now, people are looking out 
              their windows, watching what's going down.
              
              Hood Leader looks up and sees Bill at an upstairs window.  
              He raises his arm, points at Bill.
              
                                    HOOD LEADER
                        You were warned!
              
              Hood Leader turns his head left and then right, looking at 
              his men.  It's the signal they've been waiting for, they 
              charge the house, whooping!
              
              
              INT. HALLWAY - NIGHT
              
              Daph half-carries, half-drags their SON and DAUGHTER 
              downstairs, wrapped in bedsheets, they're whining and 
              groaning and confused.  Bill follows her downstairs.
              
              At the bottom, Daph turns and looks up at Bill.  A look 
              passes between them.  It might be I love you, it might be 
              goodbye, it might be both.  No time for words.  Bill nods.  
              Daph runs along the hallway to the back of the house, with 
              their kids.
              
              Bill looks at the heavy front door, which is barred and 
              bolted.  He hears the whooping men getting closer.
              
              SLAM! -- the door shudders like it's been hit by a rhino.
              
              Bill just stands there, doesn't run.
              
              SLAM! -- and the door frame woodwork begins to split, screws 
              loosen.
              
              Bill licks his lips, takes short panic breaths.
              
              SLAM! -- and the door just can't take it, the bolts give 
              way, the bars bend.
              
              THE DOOR SLAMS OPEN and the hooded men pour inside, yelling!
              
              
              INT. VARIOUS ROOMS - NIGHT
              
              Bill is off his mark like an Olympic sprinter, he runs 
              through the house, drawing the hooded men away from Daph 
              and the kids.
              
              The hooded men jam each other in doorways and trip over 
              each other and bang into furniture, but they keep coming 
              after Bill, who goes from room to room, slamming doors 
              shut behind him, throwing down chairs, stools, anything, 
              to trip them up.
              
              The men crash their way through, determined to catch him.
              
              
              INT. KITCHEN - NIGHT
              
              Bill slams the door shut and with desperate strength topples 
              the fridge onto its side so it blocks the door.  BANGING 
              and CURSING from the other side.  The hooded men are 
              stopped.
              
              But the door and fridge move a fraction -- then another 
              fraction -- enough for someone to stick their fingers 
              through the gap.
              
              Bill kicks the door!  Someone SCREAMS and the fingers are 
              pulled back.  Bill puts his weight against the fridge.
              
              Behind Bill, the outside door opens silently and Hood Leader 
              enters.  Four hooded men stand outside, watching.
              
              Bill spins round, sees Hood Leader.  He pulls a big knife 
              from the knife block and raises it to defend himself.
              
              Hood Leader pulls off his hood, revealing his big ruddy 
              face and white hair, an untrustworthy politician type.  
              (We will still call him Hood Leader to avoid confusion.)
              
              Bill gapes in shock, recognizing him. 
              
                                    HOOD LEADER
                        Bill, Bill, give it up.  It's over, 
                        can't you see that?
              
                                    BILL
                        One more f*ckin' step, and I swear--
              
                                    HOOD LEADER
                        Any sensible man would've learned 
                        to keep his trap shut.  If not for 
                        himself then for his family.  But 
                        no, not you.  You just had to keep 
                        on yakkin'.
              
              Hood Leader gestures to the men outside, they enter and 
              fan out so they can come at Bill from all sides.
              
                                    HOOD LEADER
                        Now look what it's come to.
              
              Behind Bill the blocked door is slowly opening, inch by 
              inch, as the fridge is pushed aside.
              
              Bill is f*cked and he knows it, there's no way out.
              
                                    HOOD LEADER
                        Why don't you put the knife down 
                        before you hurt yourself?
              
                                    BILL
                        Why don't you make me?  Come on, 
                        big man, show your c*cks*cker
                        followers how brave you are.
              
              Fast as a snake, Hood Leader picks up a stool and throws 
              it at Bill, who has to duck, and that's when the hooded 
              men rush in and grab his arms and twist the knife out of 
              his hand.  Bill struggles to get free but it's no good.
              
              Hood Leader shouts to the men trying to break in past the 
              fridge:
              
                                    HOOD LEADER
                        We got him!
              
              Activity there dies down.
              
                                    BILL
                        Coward son of a bitch.  You pay 
                        other men to do your dirty work 
                        for you.
              
                                    HOOD LEADER
                        Nobody's being paid.  Don't you 
                        see?  It's the Lord's work they 
                        do.  Take him out!
              
              The hooded men wrangle Bill outside.
              
              
              EXT. BILL'S HOUSE - NIGHT
              
              They bring Bill around the side of the house, to the front.  
              Hood Leader has put his hood back on.
              
              Bill freezes and digs his heels in when he sees the giant 
              cross that's lying on his lawn.
              
              Some of the hooded men have shovels, they've dug a hole 
              for the cross to slide into, so it can be pulled upright.
              
              People have come out of their houses into the street and 
              are watching.  A silent, fearful crowd.
              
                                    HOOD LEADER
                        Do it.
              
              Bill is dragged to the cross, forced to lie down on it.  
              Lengths of rope have been nailed to the cross arms and 
              body, and these are tied around Bill's wrists, torso and 
              ankles, securing him.
              
              The hooded men loop longer ropes around the top and sides 
              of the cross.  They're getting ready to pull it upright. 
              
              Bill struggles frantically but he can't break free.
              
              Hooded men pull on the ropes and lever the cross up until 
              it's settled in the hole they dug, and Bill is hanging 
              there like Jesus.
              
              WHOOPS and YIPPEES from the hooded men, they fill in the 
              hole and jam their shovels around the cross as wedges.
              
              Bill groans, the ropes cut into his wrists, he's bleeding. 
              
              Hood Leader looks up at him.
              
              Bill hawks and spits at him but it falls short.
              
              Bill realizes Daph is standing among the crowd, with the 
              kids, watching.
              
              Bill tries to puzzle this out.
              
              Daph just watches, no reaction.
              
              Hood Leader turns to address the townsfolk.
              
                                    HOOD LEADER
                        We did not want to do this!  None 
                        of us wanted it!  None of us asked 
                        for it!
              
              He points up at Bill. 
              
                                    HOOD LEADER
                        This man was warned.  He was told 
                        not to speak out against the plan.  
                        We asked him politely.  We asked 
                        him more than once.  We explained 
                        how he was just causing panic, and 
                        worrying folks who had plenty worry 
                        already.
                             (politician's pause)
                        But no, he would not relent.  Him 
                        and his friends, those so-called 
                        "scientists" who claim to know 
                        everything, they insisted, they 
                        God-dang insisted on spreading 
                        their lies.
                             (another pause)
                        We cannot trust them.  They have 
                        been peddling their foolish views 
                        for years, and where has it got 
                        us?  Everything they ever said has 
                        been proved false.
              
                                    BILL
                        Don't listen to him!  He's the 
                        liar!
              
                                    HOOD LEADER
                        Everything they said has been proved 
                        false, and offers no salvation for 
                        any of us.
              
              He sweeps his arm toward the sky.
              
                                    HOOD LEADER
                        We know what's happening.  We feel 
                        the changes, year on year.  And we 
                        know it's gonna get a lot worse.  
                        God help us all when it does. 
                             (another pause)
                        That's why, that's why the big 
                        boss, the big man, that's why he's 
                        doing what he's doing.  It's the 
                        only way to change things back to 
                        the way they were.
              
                                    BILL
                        It will destroy the atmosphere.  
                        It will create a nuclear winter 
                        that will lay waste to crops and 
                        doom the human race.
              
              Hood Leader bows his head, taking deep breaths.
              
              The hooded men pour gasoline around the base of the cross. 
              
              The crowd shifts, uncertain, whispering.
              
                                    HOOD LEADER
                        You hear what he's saying.  You 
                        understand the meaning of his words.  
                        But you all know, deep in your 
                        hearts, that this is another 
                        falsehood.  The big boss has figured 
                        it all out.  He's gonna launch 
                        them nooclear rockets.  Tomorrow 
                        night the sky is going to light 
                        up.  Its glow will cleanse us and 
                        it will cleanse our planet.  The 
                        climate will return to what it 
                        once was.  We shall flourish in a 
                        new Eden.
              
              The hooded men light pitch torches, these are distributed 
              to the crowd.  Flames crackle and spit.
              
              Bill watches in anguish as Daph takes a torch.
              
              He turns his head away as his children are given torches.
              
                                    HOOD LEADER
                        And so we are come to this.  We 
                        are come to this, because nothing 
                        must stop the plan.  This man,
              
              He gestures wildly at Bill without looking back at him,
              
                                    HOOD LEADER
                        cannot be allowed to sow his lies, 
                        his deceit.  Not any more.  It 
                        stops now.
                             (another pause)
                        We do not do this lightly.  But 
                        punishment must be meted to those 
                        who will not listen to reason.
              
                                    BILL
                        Detonating nuclear bombs is not 
                        the answer!  For God's sake, listen 
                        to me!  You have to voice your 
                        objections before it's too late, 
                        and stop this madness!
              
              Hood Leader looks at Daph.
              
                                    HOOD LEADER
                        Daphne, will you be first?
              
              Daph steps forward.  She looks up at Bill.
              
              Bill pleads with his eyes.
              
              Daph looks at the torch in her hand, and frowns.
              
              Bill enjoys a moment of hope, she won't do it.
              
              Daph chucks the torch down and the gasoline catches fire.
              
              The flames leap up, touching Bill's shoes.
              
              Daph steps back and beckons their kids forward.
              
              The kids throw their torches into the flames.  They don't 
              look up at their father.
              
              And everyone else throws their torches into the bonfire.  
              The flames creep up the cross and begin to eat at Bill's 
              feet and legs.
              
              Daph leads the kids away, they don't look back as Bill's 
              AGONIZED SCREAMS fill the night.  Behind them the light 
              from the blaze illuminates the street, the people.
              
              Hood Leader falls into step beside Daph.  He takes off his 
              hood, folds it and slips it inside his jacket.
              
              Daph leans against him and puts her head on his shoulder.
              
                                    DAPH
                        Oh Daddy, I am so sorry.
              
                                    HOOD LEADER
                        None of this was your doing.  He 
                        and only he is responsible for his 
                        fate.  Remember this.
              
                                    DAPH
                        I will.
              
              Another hooded man joins them and he takes off his hood, 
              he's a big handsome fellow.  He looks down at the kids and 
              smiles.
              
                                    HANDSOME MAN
                        Are you kids doing okay?
              
                                    BILL'S DAUGHTER
                        Yep.
              
                                    BILL'S SON
                        Are you our new daddy?
              
                                    HANDSOME MAN
                        Reckon I might be.  Depends on 
                        your mommy.
              
              He smiles at Daph and she smiles back.
              
              Somewhere behind them, flames crackle and reach up to the 
              starlit sky.
              
              FADE OUT
              Last edited by dpaterso; 09-08-2019, 09:31 AM. Reason: got it thanks!

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